Bernstein Research analyst Tony Sacconaghi estimates that more than a quarter of the iPhones sold in the U.S. have been “unlocked” to work on network providers other than officially sanctioned AT&T.

That’s about 27 percent of the iPhones sold in 2007.

It works out to about 1.45 million handsets.

What do these numbers mean?

Even if they are estimated, these numbers mean that an amazing number of people have taken the time, effort, and trouble to unlock the phones, no matter the complexity or risk. Some of these people are techies and hackers who are comfortable messing around with the innards of electronic equipment.

But to hit these numbers, it means that a whole lotta average folks are unlocking their iPhones or — more likely — paying a cottage industry to do it for them.

Granted, the start of today’s FCC 700 MHz spectrum auction is no spectator sport. No network coverage. No $3 million ads. No pre-game shows.

And yet the auction isn’t without intrigue for you and me, although it’s more along the lines of Tammany Hall or a Dick Cheney cabinet meeting. Oh, to be a fly on the wall at AT&T, Verizon, Google, and the Federal Communications Commission, the chief players in the spectrum hunt.

For the most part, nobody yet cares about the 700 MHz spectrum (FCC table) except for teleco geeks, the tech press and bloggers, and the players themselves. It’s too early for any of this to matter at a practical, day-to-day level. But do not underestimate its importance to our lives in the long run, at least here in the U.S.

The iPod Touch is Apple’s next generation iPod, right? Wrong.

During the company’s Q1 earnings conference call, Apple executives finally let the cat out of the bag and admitted publicly what they’ve known and I believed all along: the iPod Touch is potentially the “first mainstream Wi-Fi mobile platform, running all kinds of mobile applications”, not just music, video and casual web browsing.

Two words stick out: platform and mainstream.

With this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and Macworld just around the corner, let the rumor mongering and product “leaks” begin. Today’s news (Engadget) is that users of Sony’s PlayStation Portable will soon be able to make Internet-based telephone calls and send messages over Skype’s network. Interestingly, the source of the “leak” is Sony’s own official CES preview page.

This isn’t the first time Sony has sought to add VoIP functionality to the PSP. Last May, Sony Europe announced that they had teamed up with British Telecom to bring voice calls, video conferencing and IM functionality to users across Europe. However, Skype has a huge installed user base, much larger than BT’s own ‘softphone’ products, and presumably will be offered to users in the U.S. and other parts of the world, not just Europe.

Cellulare Magazine have published a hands-on video of the new Skype cell phone offered by 3 Mobile (see yesterday’s coverage).

A few observations:

• The handset itself won’t win any prizes on the style-front. It’s a bog standard candy-bar design, with a slightly cheap looking trim. This isn’t a phone for the tech-savvy early adopter crowd to rival the iPhone, but is squarely aimed at younger, more general, price conscious consumers.
• Despite offering first-of-its-kind native Skype functionality, the phone doesn’t feature WiFi. Duh!
• Sending Skype-to-Skype IMs maybe free, but there is, sadly, no QWERTY keyboard.
• Presence — the ability to see who is “online” and ready to receive a call — is a great feature on a cell phone.

Watch the video for yourself, after the jump…

A recent report on U.S. sales of Apple’s iPhone claimed that the biggest losers have been Palm, T-Mobile and Motorola.

According to the NPD Group’s research, initial iPhone buyers were ten times more likely to have previously owned a Palm Treo, three times more likely to have owned a T-Mobile Sidekick, with many iPhone purchases also replacing a Motorola Q. In contrast, RIM’s Blackberry appears to have dodged Apple’s bullet, with the iPhone’s lack of corporate email support being cited as one possible reason.

Nokia also went largely unscathed, perhaps because the Scandinavian company doesn’t have the same presence in the U.S. as in other parts of the world.

However, not one to rest on its laurels, and with the iPhone set to launch in Europe next month, Nokia today unveiled the next version of the Symbian-based mobile operating system, S60, which will offer the option of an iPhone-like touch-screen user interface, and includes support for Flash video. S60 currently powers mobile devices from LG Electronics, Lenovo, Samsung, and Nokia themselves — including the company’s showcase N95.

Despite paying homage to the iPhone, the new enhanced S60 sports a few innovations of its own.

Would you welcome spam onto your mobile phone in return for free text messages and voice minutes? Blyk, a new mobile network for 16 to 24 year olds which launched in the UK today, believes that the answer is yes.

The idea behind the virtual network operator (infrastructure is provided by France Telecom’s Orange) is to match brands to users, through targeted advertising in the form of multimedia messages (MMS). Up to six messages will be sent per-day, with users rewarded with 43 minutes of voice calls and 217 text messages per-month, after which they can pay to “top up” their SIM card for more minutes and texts. Stay within the “free” limits, and thanks to advertising, you’ll never have to pay a mobile phone bill again.

While many expect Google to throw its hat in the ring, and enter a bid in the upcoming U.S. wireless spectrum auction, Apple’s name hasn’t really been mentioned — until now that is. Yesterday, Business Week reported that CEO Steve Jobs and Co. have studied the implications of joining the auction, which will be held Jan. 16, given that the chance to wrestle power away from incumbent telco’s — such as AT&T and Verizon — is too tempting to dismiss outright. Many feel that Apple’s iPhone will be deemed a success in spite of its partnering carriers, not because of them.